Self-control in postsecondary settings: students' perceptions of ADHD college coaching

J Atten Disord. 2013 Apr;17(3):215-32. doi: 10.1177/1087054711427561. Epub 2011 Dec 15.

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify undergraduates' perceptions of the impact of ADHD coaching on their academic success and broader life functioning.

Method: One-on-one interviews were conducted with 19 students on 10 different U.S. campuses who comprised a purposive sample of gender, cumulative grade point average, and self-regulation skills variables as measured by the learning and study strategies inventory. Interview transcripts were coded using NVivo 8 software, and emergent themes were triangulated with students' descriptions of personal artifacts that symbolized coaching's influence on their lives.

Results: Students reported that ADHD coaching helped them become more self-regulated, which led to positive academic experiences and outcomes. Students described ADHD coaching as a unique service that helped them develop more productive beliefs, experience more positive feelings, and engage in more self-regulated behaviors.

Conclusion: ADHD coaching helped participants enhance their self-control as they responded to the multifaceted demands of undergraduate life.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Achievement*
  • Adolescent
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / diagnosis*
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / psychology*
  • Attitude
  • Awareness
  • Communication
  • Culture
  • Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted
  • Education, Special / methods*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Internal-External Control*
  • Interview, Psychological
  • Male
  • Social Control, Informal*
  • Software
  • Students / psychology*
  • Young Adult